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Start managing your online reputation. Stop serving everyone in your organization. Learn project management skills. Prepare your library or information center for a disaster. Build learning communities within your organization or community.

You may think you don’t need to do any of these things, let alone all five. Think again. Privacy settings provide only minimal security, serving everyone creates unrealistic expectations and prevents your library or information center from becoming a full partner on projects, and libraries and information centers will not survive if they view their mission as nothing more than providing information. And who could have guessed a year ago that a hurricane would devastate New York, bomb blasts would disrupt the Boston Marathon, and a shooter would enter a college library in California?

The July-August Information Outlook takes the guesswork out of these five critical actions. Add an interview with SLA member Ned Potter, a preview of “the next great copyright act,” and a wrap-up of the SLA 2013 Annual Conference, and this issue has something for even the most knowledgeable information professional.

SLA would also like to thank the issue’s advertisers for their support:

• Thomson Reuters
• Wolters Kluwer | Ovid
• Bloomberg Law/Bloomberg BNA
• BMJ Group
• American Physiological Society

Dig in. Read the July-August issue now!

The post July-August Information Outlook Now Available appeared first on Special Libraries Association.

Bring your questions, suggestions, comments, and ideas for membership growth and enhancement of benefits. We want to hear from YOU!

Open Q & A Session: 4:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m., Sunday, June 9th

San Diego Convention Center, Room 22

(closed session will be from 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. immediately preceding in the same room).

-Chair: Ann Sweeney (2013-2014); Committee Members: Khalilah Gambrell (2013-2014); Sandy Hirsh (2013-2014); Kim McGrath (2013-2014); Board Liaison: Brent Mai; Committee Staff Member: Paula Diaz.

The post SLA’s Membership Committee Wants to Hear from You at SLA 2013 appeared first on Special Libraries Association.

The SLA Legal Division, Baseball Caucus and Illinois Chapter invite you to attend a FREE webinar:

San Diego is coming up fast!  Are you ready?

Want to make the most of your time at the INFO-EXPO? Learn how to be efficient and productive when talking with vendors (and also how to avoid those awkward conversations when all you want is the cool tee shirt) – from the viewpoint of veteran exhibitors!

Please join us as five SLA vendor members with more than 80 years of professional Library selling experience give you the ins and outs of making your SLA experience more productive. These information industry veterans will help you prepare the right questions so your time in the exhibit hall is well spent.

You can choose to hear the audio for this meeting either through your computer speakers or by dialing the following conference call information with your phone:

Conference Call : Toll Number: 213-416-1560 / Attendee Access Code: 006 368 145

Please click here to register and receive your log-in instructions.

A recording of the session will be made available a few days after the live presentation. Keep your eyes peeled for announcements.

Brought to you by:

Baseball Caucus

Illinois Chapter

Legal Division

The post Making It Count! Face to Face with Vendors at the SLA INFO-EXPO appeared first on Special Libraries Association.

Looking for a job these days is a lot like online dating with the ways you can look people up before you meet them, so make sure your online presence is portraying you correctly! Today, as many as 93% of employers and recruiters use social networks to find candidates.

If you’ve seen the popular show on MTV called Catfish you know that when you put false information on the internet and draw someone in with those details the effect is never positive when they find out the truth! Same for an employer, when your LinkedIn profile does not match your resume it could end in you not getting the job.

So keeping in mind how you want to present yourself online, so you can land that dream job, here are some quick tips and ideas:

LinkedIn:

1. First of all –  connect with people! The more people you      know the more people that are in your network!
2. Use a professional photo. First      impressions do matter! Optimal photos use professional attire and if the      only photo of you that you like is in a group photo try to crop the photo      so you are the only one visible.
3. Make sure that your profile is      visible, up-to-date, and descriptive of your professional accomplishments.

Remember: Key words are helpful just as they are when you post your resume on Monster or other job websites as employers often use the advanced search function to search titles and/or skills.

4. Keep information on your profile consistent with your resume. Since you all have updated your resume now is a good time to create or update your LinkedIn profile!  Since most employers will look you up before meeting in person differences will be noticed and most likely discussed.
5. Join LinkedIn Groups (like DEAL!) and add to the conversation! It can be as simple as introducing yourself to the group or asking for help.  Go for it, reach out! It is a great way to network.
6. Keep personal information OFF of  LinkedIn. This is not the site to share upcoming travel plans or information on the great restaurant you just went to with friends.  Also, refrain from publicizing information about interviews you have participated in as many employers      prefer to keep this information private.
7. Keep posts positive! Searching for a job is often a job in itself and often times frustrating. Don’t leave a digital footprint badmouthing a company or hiring manager.  If will only reflect poorly on you and remain out there for access by other prospective employers in the future

Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram:

1. Keep your personal profile PRIVATE OR LOCKED! Let only your friends and family can see your updates.
2. Consider making two profiles if you use these social networking sites for other professional purposes. One profile can be personal and private while another that is professional to reflect information you want available more broadly.
3. Because Twitter can be linked to Facebook or LinkedIn. Follow organizations or networking groups to join the conversation this way as well!
4. Similar to LinkedIn, keep your content positive and do NOT post about interviews.

REMEMBER: Even if your profile is set to private most people can see your profile and cover photo so make sure those are pictures you would feel comfortable an employer seeing.

Pinterest:

Did you know you can actually pin your resume?

1. Pinterest is a visual medium so make sure if you do post you resume that the formatting looks good and that there are NO grammatical errors. Also, it is not necessary to pin your full resume but perhaps key professional affiliations, awards, or presentations on a career board with descriptive text would be more helpful.
2. See if your friends will repost your resume this way search companies with Pinterest profiles may elect to follow your networks pins.
3. Search it for career advice. On this site you will have access to tons of ideas on professional dress, thank you notes, resume formatting ideas and more!

REMEMBER:  Pinterest boards are public (for the most part) so keep your pins clean and professional!

Blogs:

Librarians LOVE to Blog! A blog that is related to your career interests is a good place to highlight your expertise in a field.

1. Keep content relevant, well written, and professional (for sure keep it free of foul language and personal attacks).
2. Be thoughtful when providing comments on other’s blogs as these comments can be located easily via a web search. Although you have every right to post your feelings and personal beliefs remember people (including prospective employers) will see them too. Online impressions matter too so it is best to review what you posted in the past and clean it up before you start applying to jobs.

MLA DEAL Career Challenge:

Remember online presence matters! During the interview process you’re looking up a company online to get a better idea of whether you could see yourself working with them, just know that they are doing the same thing with you!  At all times, keep your online information professional and pause before you post to consider if you will regret this post at some time in the future!

1. Take the time now to identify all of your online presence outlets.
2. Consider the standards discussed for each online medium and identify 1-3 action steps you can take to up your online professional game.
3. Get it done in the next week!
4. Join the DEAL Discussion on LinkedIN and let us know what you are doing to cultivate your professional online presence!

Raechel and Maura (both National Recruiters) of TRAK Records and Library!  Both are located in TRAK’s Washington, DC office but recruit across the country. 

TRAK Records and Library offers information management consultation and assessment, customized recruitment and interview approaches, and exceptional client service.  We can be reached by dialing (202) 261-7200 and asking for one of us.  We’d be happy to answer any questions you may have!

The post Online Presence for Job Seekers appeared first on Special Libraries Association.

For 2013, IOP will be doubling the value to $2,000 apiece and the committee has agreed to extend the deadline for applications. The new deadline is Monday, March 11, 2013, and applicants will receive notification of award status by April 1, 2013.

We chose the Travel Stipends as a way to memorialize our dear friend
and colleague because Louise was so proud to be a part of this program
which both supports new librarians and deepens the relationships between
those librarians and the PAM Division.

Those who have already applied for the travel awards do not need to resubmit their applications.

Thank you to everyone who has participated in this program in the
past, and we look forward to selecting the 2013 awardees and getting to
know them at the SLA in June.

For reference, below you will find the latest listserv posting with the details of the application process.

*********************************************************
Sharice P. Collins
Vice President, Marketing
IOP Publishing, Inc.
150 South Independence Mall West
Philadelphia, PA 19106
ioppublishing.org

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PAM Travel Stipend for attending SLA conference

The SLA-PAM Professional Development Committee is pleased to announce
that IOP Publishing is once again sponsoring four conference travel
stipends to help new librarians with the expenses of attending the SLA
Annual Conference. The stipends aim to accelerate the advancement of new
librarians entering science/technology librarianship by mentoring them
to access educational and professional opportunities within the SLA.
This is the fifth year running that IOP Publishing and the PAM Division
have proudly offered these travel stipends.The selected recipients will
each receive a $1,000 stipend to assist in defraying the cost of
attending the 2013 SLA conference in San Diego, CA in June 2013. Learn
more about the IOP Travel Stipend Award today and nominate yourself, or
someone you know.

Eligibility

- Applicants must be graduates of a library science program.

- Applicants must have less than 3 years of professional library information experience.

- Applicants must work in a library focusing on one or more of the
PAM disciplines (physics, astronomy, mathematics, or computer science)
or act as a library’s subject specialist for one or more of these
disciplines.

- Applicants must be first-time attendees of the SLA annual conference, or first-time attendees in a PAM discipline.

- International applicants must be eligible to travel to the United
States and must be available to participate in US-based PAM activities
throughout the year.

The committee reserves the right not to grant any of the four awards
if not enough applications meet all eligibility requirements and adhere
to all the application procedures.

Only applicants who meet all the eligibility requirements at the time
of application are submitted to the SLA-PAM review committee for travel
stipend consideration.

Candidate Expectations

- Candidate must attend the SLA Annual Conference the year the award is given.

- Candidate must attend the PAM business meeting and breakfast.

- Candidate must be willing to attend PAM sessions and events at the
Annual Conference and participate in a group photo session administered
by SLA.

- Candidate must be available to participate in US-based PAM activities throughout the year.

Application Procedure

1. Prepare a brief letter (approximately 750 words), answering the questions:- How do you meet the criteria?

- What do you hope to gain from attending the 2013 SLA conference?

- How do you expect/hope to be involved with the PAM division in the short and long term?

2. Submit current curriculum vitae/resume.

Applications can be submitted via email to Margaret Lam at mlam3@gmu.edu (subject line should begin with PAM Travel Stipend). Applications will be accepted until March 11, 2013. Late applications cannot be considered.

Notification

Applicants will receive notification of award status by April 1,
2013. The award check will be presented at the PAM business meeting and
breakfast.

No money transfer will be made in case the award recipient can’t attend the conference for any reason.

The PAM Division is deeply grateful to IOP Publishing for their
continued involvement with and support of librarians at the SLA
conference, and most especially for their generous commitment to the
professional development of young science librarians.

Selection Committee Members:
Sharice Collins, Vice President, Marketing, IOP Publishing, Inc.
Stella Ota, PAM Chair
Margaret Lam, PAM Professional Development Chair
Kathleen Lehman, PAM Mentoring Sub-Committee Chair

The post PAM Travel Stipends – UPDATE appeared first on Special Libraries Association.

Value is the standard by which many business leaders evaluate the success of their internal operations, and finding a formula or process for measuring how the library contributes to it has become the proverbial Holy Grail of information professionals. Many info pros reflexively turn to measures such as return on investment, but as Constance Ard writes in the September/October issue of Information Outlook, ROI "is an after-the-fact metric" that is "less useful than it once was." Transactional statistics–for example, the number of times users access information resources–also miss the mark; as Martha Haswell notes, such metrics "are invaluable in managing a library, but they are not sufficient for influencing senior management's thinking on library value or funding."

So, how can information professionals demonstrate and communicate value? Ard, Haswell and Steve Hiller have some ideas:

• Metrics to evaluate library value should be developed jointly by organizational management, the library, and the user community. (Hiller)
• Organizations with a global presence are placing more value on increasing the number of hours per day that library staff are available to assist users. (Haswell)
• With the rising price of information resources, many libraries and information centers are asking other departments to share these costs, which can help demonstrate value. (Haswell)
• Applying metrics is a matter of asking the five W's (who, what, where, when and why) as well as how. (Ard)
• The key factor in deciding which metrics to communicate is to align them with organizational goals and values. (Ard)

These are just a few of the insights on metrics and value you can gain by reading the September/October issue of Information Outlook, the magazine of SLA. And be sure to check out the member interview with Dee Baldwin, Deanna Marcum's thoughts on doctoral degrees for librarians, Jill Strand's review of Guy Kawasaki's speech at SLA 2012 and how it can benefit your marketing efforts .. and much, much more.

The post Value: The Proof is in the Metrics appeared first on Special Libraries Association.

Stacey Greenwell, Candidate for Division Cabinet Chair-Elect

The question begins with: "SLA is an international organization."  We are international, and we are proud of that.  Yet sometimes we seem to forget that.  I cannot count the number of times I have corrected colleagues, friends, or unit members when they say "national headquarters," "national conference," etc.  I have not heard "Winter Meeting" in quite some time, so we are making progress.

So one important aspect in involving more members outside of North America is to continue to actively promote that we are an international organization.  That's something to be proud of, and that's one of the reasons I am involved in SLA.  I find it far more interesting to learn with information professionals from around the world who work in a wide variety of environments than to be involved with a much more narrowly focused group.  If we are all thinking internationally, our actions will be focused in a way that include members around the world.

One of those actions is of course utilizing various technologies to help connect members around the world.  Many of us stay connected post-conference via social media; some days I chat more with a friend in New Zealand than I do with colleagues down the hall.  Webinars and Skype sessions also help in reducing physical distances.  I recently attended SLA Europe's Meet the President-Elect Candidates event as the time worked better for me than sessions offered by U.S. chapters.  We need to continue taking advantage of these technologies to communicate and collaborate with our colleagues around the world.

In addition to staying connected via various technologies year round, we need to make sure our face-to-face time at Annual Conference and Leadership Summit remains valuable.  Members outside of North America often travel great distances to participate in SLA activities, so we need to be aware of that and make the most of those face-to-face opportunities through excellent programming and networking.

SLA's international focus is one of its greatest strengths, and we need to continue supporting and growing our membership around the world.

The post Candidate Question 5: SLA is International appeared first on Special Libraries Association.

This year’s conference offers over 300 sessions and events! Here is a preview of what you can look forward to:

• Networking opportunities: Sometimes the most valuable thing you'll learn will come from talking to other information professionals.
• Continuing Education sessions: Many of the sessions feature real-life examples that you can learn from immediately.
• Top-notch INFO-EXPO hall: Looking for new vendors or new products? Get invaluable time to talk one-on-one with the leading companies in the industry.
• Keynote Speaker: Guy Kawasaki is the co-founder of Alltop.com, a founding partner at Garage Technology Ventures and a columnist for the Open Forum of American Express. Previously, he was the chief evangelist of Apple.

Also….

Rooms are filling up quickly as the excitement grows for SLA 2012 in Chicago. There are still rooms available at the Hilton Chicago, our headquarters hotel where evening receptions and open houses will be held. CLICK HERE to make your reservations.

The future is NOW…Are you ready? Register Today!

The post SLA 2012 Advance Registration Ends June 29 appeared first on Special Libraries Association.

Stacey Greenwell, Candidate for Division Cabinet Chair-Elect

Over the past ten years, I have stated many times how SLA has helped me both professionally and personally.   I usually give examples ranging from the leadership opportunities, programming, and networking, pointing out that a professional organization is a great training ground for developing a wide variety of skills.  Earlier in my career, I did not have many opportunities at work to run meetings, organize programs, manage budgets, and so forth, and SLA has been a great place for me to develop those skills.  I often give the same answer to this question, so I thought it might be fun to list a few very specific moments that SLA has helped me grow:

• In 2004, I co-planned the first IT Dance Party (it wasn’t exactly a dance party—we’d hired a line dance instructor and realized that everyone just wanted to dance, so we ran with it!) and learned more than you’d ever want to know about the details of planning conference events later on through roles in IT, Academic, and two times on the Annual Conference Advisory Council
• I got into social media, creating the first Facebook presence for SLA in 2006 (it was called “SLA Members on Facebook,” back when Facebook was an academic-only network, and it was a novelty to find other professionals on the site)
• I launched my personal blog after attending a Blogger’s Social at SLA and blogged for IT for several years
• As IT Chair, I learned how to stay organized and get things done remotely with the support of volunteers around the world
• I learned how to build things in Second Life as well as run meetings in a virtual world
• At the 2008 conference, I spoke in front of my largest audience at that point and loved it
• I learned how to use a teleprompter for my first run for Board in 2009 (tip: if you don’t wear makeup like me, I highly recommend it for HD cameras)
• When I led the petition drive to start the Academic Division, I learned how to stick with a good idea, even if it doesn’t win you many friends.  That was a tough process, but nearly four years later, the Academic Division continues to grow and prosper.
• In addition to professional contacts, I have developed a large network of friends from around the world—being a Kentucky Chapter member has possibly contributed to that
• And yes, back to my usual “run meetings, organize programs, manage budgets, and so forth” response, I learned so much about budgeting and understanding financial documents through my valuable time on the Finance Committee

For these reasons and many others, I am glad to call SLA my professional home, and I look forward to continuing to grow professionally and personally through my SLA involvement in the years to come.

The post Candidate Question 4: Professional and Personal Growth appeared first on Special Libraries Association.

(Kama Siegel, Candidate for Chapter Cabinet-Elect)

I am one of those annoying people who tells new or prospective SLA members, "I wouldn't have my job if not for my ORSLA membership." And it's true! I also don't think it's particularly unusual, though feel free to weigh in below. Our profession is all about forging connections between individuals in order to make a strong and supportive network. This network often results in incredibly useful, if not lucrative, connections. Such rewards require time and energy to be put in, but it is absoultely worth it.

It is actually difficult to distinguish personal from professional growth attributable to SLA membership. My skills as a networker (is that a word?) and public speaker have been honed, but I would consider both of those skills valuable in all aspects of life. I have also been fortunate to create relationships with people I would not have met were it not for my involvement in SLA. These relationships are personally fulfilling as well as professionally. Not only have they increased my circle of friends, but also my knowledge and appreciation of the vast range of librarianship in our organization.

Going to SLA annual conferences always allows me to increase my awareness of innovations and trends in the profession. It is useful to peruse blogs, and a pleasant way to spend an evening is by having intimate discussions with fellow local librarians. But it's another thing entirely to be immersed in an intense environment with hundreds of professionals, all exchanging knowledge and ideas. It's a heady and enriching experience that cannot be replaced.

I often come home from annual conferences so chock full of ideas and enthusiasm that it's hard to know where to start. Even if I won't implement many of these ideas due to budget constraints or technological shortcomings, it is still valuable to be aware of what's out there and of what the possibilities are, in case I ever have the opportunity to carry them out.

I look forward to meeting (or reuniting with) many of you in Chicago! As you can tell, I'm getting pretty excited about it.

The post Candidate Question #4 (Professional and Personal Growth) appeared first on Special Libraries Association.